Sky-Rats & The Man In Black (Big Business Visions, Continued)

Jan17

Back in October, I wrote about a disconnect I’d discovered, having to do with the vision of my business – turns out, I wasn’t in that vision! I sat down to correct the disconnect with a fresh visualization, but the first go-round was unsatisfying.

So I closed my eyes, and tried again.

Instantly, I was transportedto the seashore.

I sighed, in that long-suffering way usually reserved for characters in Jane Austin novels. Why? Because this seashore image, like the previous studio-with-a-view one, had been popping into my mind quite a bit.

But I’m not a big ocean person, and the beach is hardly my dream work environment. I pushed ahead with the image anyway, to see what would happen.

In my mind’s eye, I practiced wiggling my toes, digging them into the sand. There was a warm (but not too warm) breeze, waves that weren’t too big, or too small, a bright blue sky, with gauzy white clouds filtering the sun – not too bright, either. It was a very Goldilocks sort of beach, I guess.

Scanning the horizon, I saw no boats, no swimmers, no people, and, thankfully, no sharks (or sharknados!) that I could see.

I started to get frustrated with the lack of activity, when two children raced in front of my vision, giggling, then disappeared.

They had an otherworldly feel to them, all semi-transparent and motion blurred, so probably not meant as literal children, but some sort of spirit/metaphor. They were trailing a red balloon on a string.

There was silence again,just waves & sun and sand.

I waited.

More silence.

More nothing.

And more silence.

Finally, I willed something, anything else into existence – ANYTHING to break up the picture and add some sort of clue to work with.

In answer, a few seagulls appeared off in the distance. Just silhouettes, really, but at least it was something other than a vague “broad horizons” or “an ocean of possibilities” metaphor.

A gull flew closer. And closer.

It circled overhead, coming right towards me, soaring, diving down closer, and then? It dropped something right into my hands.

I looked down, a little nervously. Seagulls are known for dropping some rather… erm… splattery… “gifts” and I had, after all, asked for “anything”.

I needn’t have worried. In my hand was a small paper scroll. I’d received a message! Ohh! Finally, some clarity… or so I hoped. I untied the string, unrolled the paper, and read the words of wisdom…

Seagulls Sell Seashells

By The Seashore…

…in Atlanta.

SERIOUSLY? I mean,REALLY?

And just FYI, Mr. Seagull… there isn’t a damn seashore in ATLANTA!! It’s definitely land locked. I looked it up on a map to be sure!

I stared down at the message from my subconscious, and turned it over in my hands. “Oh, look…” sez me, “…the message continues on the back.” What additional, clarifying context does it provide?

“… and maybe Buffalo. ”

Yepp, that’s Buffalo, NY.

Well, at least there’s a really big lake there, which is way more water than Atlanta has going for it.

I got the the sense that an entire list of apparently random locations could appear on the back of that scroll, if I watched long enough. Imagine a seagull doing singing along to “I’ve Been Everywhere, Man” from The Man in Black himself, and you’ll get the picture.

THIS was to be the rootof my new business plan?

THIS is the defining vision and goal for my success? I ask for guidance, and I get sky rat gulls, spouting tongue-twisters and impressions of Johnny Cash?!? WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN, JOHNNY?!?

I know I used this image yesterday,
but it’s even MORE appropriate today.

I did (eventually) figure out what it all meant.

At least parts of it.

Shortly after doing this exercise, I went over the resulting vision with one of my favorite creative cohorts. After she stopped laughing at my frustration with the damnedable seagull , we brain-stormed until the studio-and-campground bit almost seemed like a realistic possibility. And the sky-rats? Well, the seagull’s message seems to be about supply, scarcity and demand – and maybe the need to create a market.

Ok, that bit still only makes sense in a very abstract way, but that’s ok.

I LIKE the abstract.

I live there, like the seagull lives by the seashore…. (get it yet?)

But in the next post, I’ll explain what’s happened since this visualization, and how my interpretation has evolved.

Now, I know that some of you can’t help but try to interpret this vision your own way, and I know that some of you will be bursting at the seams to share that interpretation.

Please don’t. I mean that.

It’s a very personal sort of vision. And I’m not sharing my process to get feedback or analysis or advice on what you think I should do with my life, talent or business. I’m sharing this visualization process because:

It’s important to know that visualizations can produce very strange and less-than-obvious results – and it’s not just you the strangeness happens to.

It really is helpful to not only visualize your goals, but to visualize yourself achieving them in first person.

All of this nonsense gives context to changes that are about to happen around here, changes that otherwise might seem… well… weird. Or poorly thought out. Or … weird.

I really liked my drawing of the seagull and wanted an excuse to to share it.

2 comments

“started to get frustrated with the lack of activity, when two children raced in front of my vision, giggling, then disappeared.

They had an otherworldly feel to them, all semi-transparent and motion blurred, so probably not meant as literal children, but some sort of spirit/metaphor. They were trailing a red balloon on a string.”

Good lord, you were trapped in a pretentious “art film”. It probably won an award.